Laser Weapons
Lasers are the most common and simplest type of directed energy weapon, and happen to be the most flexible. They range in size from compact pistols able to be fired in one hand to laser cannons mounted on a Starship and everything in between, much like their Coilgun technological counterparts. The human terms for 'laser' are actually derived from an acronym, LASER which stands for 'L'ight 'A'mplification by 'S'timulated 'E'mission of 'R'adiation. Laser weapons, beamers in particular, are actually less complex to manufacture to a high standard than equivalent-sized coilguns, and given their unique properties have a number of advantages. For small arms and vehicle armaments, one should refer to the Beamer article, since Beamer technology and the laser technology used on Starships varies somewhat (though this variance decreases once the Fusion Laser principle is nano-miniaturized). Lasers have many other applications besides weaponry however, including welding, cladding, optical readers and sensors, laser-based surgery, in antimatter capacitors, and many others. History and usage For most of the Galaxy's history, laser technology was ubiquitous but mostly used in infantry weapons, industrial manufacturing, electronics, and medicine. In space warfare, coil-cannons were the primary weapon (rather than the auxiliary arm they are in modern times) which meant that battles were shorter, more decisive, and tactics were radically different. Then a revolution in warfare began about 66,000 years ago when the Desan invented the Fusion Laser. Prior laser technologies, like the resonance laser and chemical laser, were ill-suited to starship-to-starship combat due to their relatively poor performance against armour (which was built to resist coilgun projectiles) and poor energy efficiency. The fusion laser changed all that: it was compatible with already-existing power plant systems, and was more powerful and more efficient than both prior designs. The only problem is that, while more efficient, it still required a lot of power, which meant starships had to increase in size to accommodate a greater quantity of fusion cores, which increased mass and reduced speed while presenting a bigger target and RADAR blip. These were minor trade-offs however, in exchange for a weapon that was more reliable and had greater range than any coil-cannon. Engagement range increased up to 10-40 light-seconds under some circumstances, and the dynamics of warfare were changed forever. The last time that a space battle was fought entirely (or mostly) with coil-cannons was the Battle of Mosylon. Since then, laser cannons have become the primary arm of any Astrofleet, in fact some warships don't bother to equip anything else. While coil-cannons, drones, and missiles still have their place, they are as support weapons and force multipliers, or for filling niche roles. The revolution the Desan started caught on in the rest of the galaxy fairly quickly, although it was developed independently in other areas as well around the same time. The Desan were likely not the first among starfaring races to make this development - but perhaps simply the most influential, and it certainly started to gain traction during their time in the Milky Way. Types Picking up where the Beamer article leaves off. Multi-laser Multi-lasers are both a ground weapon and a starship weapon, so their role in space should be covered here as well. Their niche is as close-in weapon systems, with better tracking than even dedicated point-defense lasers but generally incapable of damaging armoured drones or missiles. But they can prove a sufficient deterrent to boarding actions and lightly-armoured drones (though these types would rarely head-on assault a starship). Multi-lasers are especially common on mass conveyors, as the most common type of starship which falls prey to boarding actions. Point-defense laser A step above the multi-laser, somewhat more powerful but lacking its rate of fire (and slower in general). In contrast to the multi-laser these have great effectiveness against all drone and missile types, usually disabling or destroying them in 1-3 direct hits. Usually PD lasers use resonance technology to save on energy costs, but sometimes they can be beefed up by using Chemical laser technology. This makes the relatively weak point-defense laser somewhat effective against even light warships, sloops in particular. Category:Spaceship Armaments